The business of insurance is about selling a promise, based on trust. Trust that in time of need the clients’ claims will be paid out and the client restored to the same position they were in before the loss.

“Since Marsh’s client offering is based on helping clients indentify, manage and mitigate risk, it only makes sense that the businesses’ compliance programme also mitigates risk and delivers trust” says Ryan Quan-Chai, chief compliance officer at Marsh Africa.

As an American company operating across the globe, Marsh complies with a host of legislation across its various jurisdictions – while also ensuring that its global practices are compliant with United States legislation. This prompted Quan-Chai to ask, “What advantage could this added layer of compliance give us over other industry players?”

The answer gets to the core of what Marsh is as a business.

Marsh’s dealing in trust all the time has taught that trust is the foundation of reputation – and a critical area in which the business differentiates itself from the competition. As such, “Protecting, deepening and delivering trust through good governance is at the core of our business strategy,” says Quan-Chai.

Since perceptions about what constitutes a conflict of interest might vary across regions, all employees must be able to identify any conflicts, potential or real, that could jeopardise Marsh’s reputation - or conflict with global best practice.

For example, prospective clients may be based in countries against which the United States, the European Union, or the United Nations has enacted trade sanctions. Many of these trade sanctions are based on certain countries' reputations for supporting terrorism. If there is a trade sanction against a country, Marsh may be legally barred from doing business with entities in these countries. As such, employees should always check with compliance to determine whether there is a trade sanction that may affect potential business.

“Even though it may allow the competition to gain a business advantage in some cases, obeying the law is the right way to protect the company and ensure that all contracts are delivered legally and without risk – over the long term,” says Quan-Chai.

Called the Greater Good Marsh’s code of conduct is taught through a professional video and interactive booklet, delivered through face to face training for all colleagues. Beyond understanding and complying with the legislation, employees need to associate with the Marsh code of conduct. The principles of The Greater Good are illustrated by the use of typical scenarios involving conflicting situations that colleagues are often faced with. “Our approach is not to distribute dull and tedious text books, soon forgotten at the bottom of a drawer. Instead, we encourage our staff to consider and discuss scenarios that could jeopardise their reputation or that of Marsh,” says Quan-Chai.

For example, in the right circumstances, a modest gift may be a thoughtful thank you, or a meal may be an appropriate setting for a business discussion that strengthens a client relationship. When not used with care, however, gifts and entertainment may create the appearance of improper influence, violate client standards, and may even break the law.

In Sub Saharan Africa there are varying levels of regulations governing the giving or receiving of gifts, ranging from limited to strict regulations with varying thresholds. Marsh has applied a standard which is applied globally, namely, where local legislation regulates the giving or receiving of gifts the stricter will apply.

The Greater Good sets a high standard for all Marsh colleagues around the world. The code of conduct addresses cultural differences across the globe and speaks to Marsh’s internal policies, setting the tone for how things are done at Marsh. So, regardless of where in the world Marsh is operating it is applying global best ethical practice at any place and at any time.

For example, suppliers invite Marsh employees to a charitable golf tournament. The local compliance officer approves their attendance. At the tournament, one of the Marsh employees wins a set of clubs valued at $2 000 in a raffle. In this circumstance the employee might well ask whether it is acceptable to accept the golf clubs. A glance at The Greater Good’s sections on gifting will, however, quickly point out that a prize received in a contest or a raffle is a gift. Moreover a $2 000 gift is extravagant and accepting it would violate Marsh’s Gifts and Entertainment Policy,” explains Quan-Chai.

Beyond understanding the legislations and getting the policies right at a legal and corporate practice level, “employees need to understand and emotionally and ethically internalise these codes of correct practice if they are to become a lived reality within the business,” adds Quan-Chai.

For example, employees are taught, when faced with any decision they are unsure about, to ask:

- Is it legal?
- Is it consistent with Marsh’s code and company policy?
- Is it based on a thorough understanding of the risks involved?
- Will it maintain trust with clients, shareholders, regulators and colleagues?
- Would it maintain our good reputation if it appeared on television, in the newspapers or the internet?

If the answer to any of these questions is no, employees are taught to stop and speak up.

As such, “We encourage an environment which is conducive to speaking up so that we can learn by sharing experiences and in this way improve both the culture and practice of ethics across the organisation,” says Quan-Chai.

In this way, “instead of viewing compliance as a burden, compliance has become an opportunity to make trust a tangible commodity, mitigating ethical risk both internally - and in our interaction with clients and service providers globally,” says Quan Chai.